We're advised the traffic controllers have delayed us an hour because of weather. This is not a complete disaster; it puts me just a little behind Susan's flight. 45 minutes later we take off, get to LA, only to be told we will need to stay in a holding pattern because air traffic has built up. Ok, still not ready to panic. We land, I get to the car rental place and -- no Susan. It's now about an hour an a half past the time we were to meet. I get the car, wait for a couple of vans to arrive, drive past the United terminal and still no Susan. So back to the car rental office where I leave a note and drive to the hotel (an hour away in LA traffic). Arrive at the hotel and haven't even started to check in when Susan calls the front desk looking for me. Her flight had been delayed significantly too and she arrived at the car rental office no more than 15 minutes after I left the last time. Over the phone we agree that the hotel is in a less than desirable location. Fortunately they were nice enough to let me cancel the room, but now we have no place to stay. Back to the car rental place (an hour away in LA traffic) to pick up Susan. (While she was waiting she dropped her mirror and broke it; hopefully 7 years bad luck does not ensue!) Back in Hollywood we stop at Tower Records to get a tape of ALWH so we can listen in the car, then we head for NBC so we can scope things out for the morning. After getting lost only once (in LA this could be major) we get to the studio, inquire about tickets, etc. and get it all figured out. Now all we have to do is find someplace to stay. You'd think there'd be a plethora of hotels in LA, but we drove for some time before we found one -- a Days Inn in Glendale, just 10 minutes on the 134 from NBC. Check in, grab some dinner, and back to the hotel. I assume we have exhausted our supply of bad luck.We arrive at NBC at 4:30 A.M. -- surprise, we're the first ones there! Susan gets in line for tickets, I park the car and get in line by the door. 6:00 A.M. Janice arrives and mentions that down the street there is a truck that's hit a little white car and gone up on the sidewalk. My heart stops...My rental car is white -- sure enough! And, no, I didn't take the insurance. This pickup was parked in the parking lot across the street and rolled (unattended) across 4 lanes of traffic to hit my car -- the only car parked there at the time! Of course, I should have known.
The rest of the day seems to go smoothly. After the show, Susan, Chris and her sister head one way and I head down to Huntington Beach to stay with a friend. Amy has been out of town on business, returning that evening (uh-oh). She has given me directions, but they are wrong. I drive around for 2 hours, calling occasionally but, since her flight has been (yes) delayed, getting no answer. (She finally arrived home at 1:00AM) At 11:00 I've had it and just check into a hotel because I want to watch the show! Saturday return the car, fill out the paperwork, go to airport (no delays this time). At the San Francisco parking garage they tell me it is $83 for 2 1/2 days! Seems parking is now $22 for first day and $35 for subsequent days. Tell parking attendant what I think about that, pay the damn charge, and go home. End of weekend from hell, now on to Dwight....
When we arrived at 4:30 I thought it would be a long day but it goes fairly quickly. We really enjoyed talking with the different people we met in line. Susan and I will be the first ones in. We get seats in the 2nd row (1st are reserved) half-way between where Dwight will play and the interview area. 
I'm on the end so I have a clear view of where Dwight and the guys will be. (The investment banker girls Jay harassed on the show were very nice. We'd told them all about Dwight since they had no idea who he was. During the day they'd taken an NBC tour and came back and told us where we should sit.)
As always the musical guest is last, but finally it is time. The curtain comes up and there's Dwight looking mighty fine in the blue suit from the "Things Change" Video and his blue suede boots! My seat is perfect with the way the band is angled -- straight in front of Dwight -- plus very close to where Dwight will sit to talk to Jay. Dwight does Things Change and seems a little suprised at the audience response when he is finished. There were a number of fans there and you know we can make a lot of noise!
The show ends, Jay introduces Dwight to someone from the audience, and then Dwight leaves wih people calling goodbye. As he gets to the doorway he turns around to wave and several of us hold up CD covers and sharpies. He goes around the door, but then crooks his finger in a come here gesture so we all get up and rush that way. I think security panicked just a little (LOL). They hold us back and say they will only take one thing back for Dwight to sign -- it's my CD cover they choose!!! signed "With Love, Dwight Yoakam" so I am in heaven. Skip comes out and talks to us, comfirms the Phoenix 4th July concert and says they'll maybe do something in Dallas around Labor Day connected with Ross Perot. Security tells us we must leave so we walk around to one of the parking exits and wait. After a while we see Steve and ask him if Dwight is still there. He says he doesn't know -- we think this means yes. A short while later a silver Jag pulls out and someone realizes that it's Dwight. They call his name, we rush after the car and .... he stops!! You could have knocked me over with a feather. He didn't get out of the car but did sit there and sign everything he was asked to. I had him sign one of the photos I'd taken off CMT of Things Change. He looked at it for a while and then laughed and said "oh you got this off CMT, I couldn't figure out where you took this." He finished signing everything, said "bye now you all be careful" and drove off into the sunset. (Aaahhhhh)
Saturday before I headed for the airport I stopped in Hollywood and found some photos I didn't have. As I was driving by Thunder Roadhouse I happened to glance up at the billboard right above the Sunset Best Western. It was an ad for When Trumpets Fade. I pulled over and got photos.
Despite the incredibly bad luck I had throughout the weekend, Dwight made it all worthwhile. (Next time, though, I think I'll let someone else rent the car!)
The first decision I make is to absolutely take the rental car insurance -- a good move, and the car is returned intact this time. The second decision was to stay at Amy's. Now I've been there in the interim so I'm not concerned about finding her place (although the last trip did involve a possessed smoke alarm that couldn't be shut off.) Anyway, I arrive at Amy's (she is out of town but has given me keys), watch a little tv and decide to hit the sack about 10:00 (after all, I've got to get up early in the morning). I've been in bed for about 5 minutes when I think, "gosh, you can hear the neighbor's door closing really clearly." Next thing I know, lights are being turned on in the hallway!! I yell hello and someone yells back -- turns out it's the guy who gets Amy's mail for her. We establish this by yelling back and forth, but I admit to being slightly freaked out at the time -- he probably was too. I conclude that it is fortunate (for me!) that Amy is moving to the San Francisco Bay Area and I'll no longer be able to stay at her place when I'm in the LA area.
3:00 a.m. arrives very early. Hit the road at 4:00 as I guesstimated it was a little over an hour to NBC Studios in Burbank. I made one wrong turn (minor) and it rained -- so far we are not approaching trip from hell status; this is good. Got to the studios about 5:30 and (surprise, surprise) I was first in line for tickets. There were a bunch of guys setting up lights, etc. I learned that they tape Days of our Lives there and were setting up to do a shoot later that day. Got my ticket and rushed around the building to the entrance for The Tonight Show. First again -- Yeah! It's now only 8 hours until we'll be admitted, 9 hours until taping starts, and 9 hours, 40 minutes until I'll see Dwight.
As did last year, the time goes quickly. About 11:00 a.m. we make the acquaintance of Tennis Shoe Boy -- a young man in his early 20s in an ill-fitting suit, a tie miles too long and tennis shoes. He chats for a minute and walks on down the street only to return a few minutes later. He's looking for the entrance to NBC because he has some ideas that are happening. He'd like to let NBC share these ideas, but he doesn't want to have a meeting with someone who is just going to brush him off onto someone else. You know, he's not a suit, he's being real with us. And if NBC doesn't want his ideas, he's going to go ahead with them anyway because he's got connections. I encouraged him to go sell his ideas -- with the emphasis on "go". We all had been fairly quiet while he was "sharing" all this with us, and I think that was what prompted him to say "I'm sensing a little tension here". That became our line for the day. Poor guy, I doubt he'll have any luck, but then again in Hollywood you never know.
Finally we're seated and I have a front row seat in that perfect half-way-between area. Dwight will pass less than 4 feet in front of me on his way to talk with Jay.
The show is very good overall. Jay does a segment at Northridge College graduation asking fairly simple questions of the graduates. Not a single student answered correctly -- the results were frightening if viewed seriously, but hilarious contextually. Lisa Kudrow and Sean Hayes were both very funny.
It's time ... Dwight looks great in jeans and his black jacket with white piping. He sings his current single, a remake of Queen's Crazy Little Thing Called Love. I think he is prepared this time for the audience reaction :-) No autographs after the show, however. A few of us waited outside the parking area again, but no luck before I had to leave for the airport. I arrive home with 15 minutes to spare(?) before the show. Popped a tape in the vcr and settled down to watch. Lots of fun and fortunately no misadventures this time.
Dwight is scheduled for the Craig Killborn show next Friday ... the saga continues.